Button



Jan. 26, 1937. A. L. WATTS 2,068,832

BUTTON Filed July 11, 1954 INVENTOR Arref/a lynrh Waf/fs ATTORN EY Patented Jan. 26, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

The purpose of this invention is to provide a button for securing pieces of material together which does not require button-holes and is not sewed or attached to either piece of material,

which may readily be removed, and in which the heads may be of different colors to correspond with the colors of garments upon which they may be used.

The invention is a button having a base and a head with a prong about the size of a pin adapted to penetrate pieces of material in order to hold the head to the base.

Many snap buttons and buttons of other types have been provided for holding pieces of material 16 together without sewing or attaching the parts thereof to the material, and many of which do snot require button-holes, but any of these do not use a fine, single prong adapted to penetrate two thicknesses of material for holding the different pieces of material together. Other snaps have been provided having two members in which one or both members are sewed or secured to the goods so that one member will hold in the other. Other buttons have been provided in which prongs from one part thereof snap into another part to hold the buttons on a piece of material, but these patents secure the button only to the material and it then requires a button-hole for another piece of material to button over the button. Substantially all of these devices require sewing or some permanent means of attaching parts thereof to the piece of material, and with some material, and also in many other instances, it is objectionable to attach any part of the button to the material.

The object of this invention is, therefore, to provide fastening means resembling buttons which may readily be supplied and which will hold different pieces of material together without attaching either part to the material, and

also without injuring the material.

Another object is to provide a button adapted to hold pieces of material together in which the material is frictionally held.

Another object is to provide a button for holding pieces of material together which may be I used for different kinds of material without breaking the threads thereof.

Another object is to provide a button for holding pieces of material together without attaching either part thereof to the material, in which a plurality of heads of different colors may be used with the same base.

A further object is to provide a button for hold- 5 ing pieces of material together without attaching either part thereof, in which one part may readily be snapped into the other, and also readily removed therefrom.

And a still further object is to provide a button for holding pieces of material together without 5 attaching either part thereof to the material, and without injuring the material, which is of a simple and economical construction.

With these ends in view the invention embodies a button having a head, a base, and 2. prong ex- 10 tending from one part and adapted to be frictionally held in the other.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description, taken in connection with the drawing, wherein: 16

Figure 1 is a view showing one application of the button showing it holding the edges of a cuff together.

Figure 2 is a detail showing the relative positions of the parts of the button and pieces of 20 material adapted to be held by the button.

Figure 3 is a detail showing the button shown in Figure 2 assembled.

Figure 4 is a cross section showing a button of an alternate design in which the springholding 25 disc bends inward.

Figure 5 is a detail showing another alternate design in which a button of the solid type is used.

Figure 6 is a view looking toward the under side of the button head showing spring fingers 30 between which the head of the prong may be held.

Figure 7 is a similar view showing an alternate arrangement of the spring members.

Figure 8 is a view showing another alternate design of the spring members. 35

Figure 9 is a view showing a button similar to that shown in Figure 5 in which a button of an alternate design is used.

Figure 10 is a view showing another alternate design in which the prong is mounted in the 40 head of the button instead of the base.

In the drawing the button is shown as it may be made wherein numeral I indicates the head, numeral 2 the base, and numeral -3 the prong.

It will be understood that the head, base and 45 prong may be made of any material and may be of any design or shape. These parts may also be comparatively large or small, or of any size,

and may be provided for holding thin or thick material, or any material desired.

In the design shown in Figures 2 and 3, the

button I is made in the form of a shell with a disc 4 in the under side thereof and the disc 4 is provided with an opening 5, the edges of which may be rolled over, as shown. The disc 5 may be slit, as shown in Figure 8, or formed as shown in Figures 6 and 7, or may be made of any shape or design. This disc may also be bent inward in a conical shape, as shown in Figure 4, in which the disc is indicated by the numeral 6, and in this design the disc will form a guide to guide the point to the opening in the center, as it will be noted that as the point is pressed against the member 8, it will follow down the incline and pass thru the opening. It will be understood, however, that any other means may be used for guiding the point toward the opening, and the member 6 may be attached to or held in the button head in any other manner, or by any means.

In the design shown, the base 2 is made of a fiat piece of material, however, it will be understood that this may also be curved, similar to the head I, as shown in Figure 10, and this may be made to resemble a button, or may be of any shape or design. It is preferred to make the prong 3 an integral part of the base 2 so that it will extend upward and may be inserted thru the material and forced thru the opening 5. In the design shown in Figures 2 and 3, the tip of the prong is provided with a slit 1 and it will be understood that as many slits as may be desired may be provided in the point. A solid point, as indicated by the numeral 8 and shown in Figures 4 and 5, may also be used, or this point may be formed in any manner.

In the design shown in Figure 5, the head I is replaced by a solid button 9, and this is provided with an opening in having an enlarged section I I in the upper part thereof, and the point 8 of the prong may be forced thru the opening l when assembling the button on the material. It will be understood, however, that this point may be slit, as shown in Figure 3, or any other means may be used for forming a point adapted to be held in the solid head. In the design shown in Figure 6, a disc I2, similar to the disc 4, is provided in the under side of the button, and this is formed with inwardly extending spring fingers l3, the inner edges of which are rolled, as shown in Figure l, and it will be noted that the point of the prong may readily be forced thru a small opening 14 between the ends of these spring fingers. This holding means may also be provided as shown in Figure 7, in which a disc I5 is provided with inwardly extending spring members I6 having a spring I! formed in the center thereof or the button may be provided with a disc l8, as shown in Figure 8, and this may be formed with slits l9, providing spring fingers 20 between the slits. These designs are only typical, and it will be understood that these spring members may be formed in the disc in any manner. The button shown in Figure 9 is similar to that shown in Figure 5 except that the head 2| is made to resemble the head I shown in Figure 2, and is made of a solid material adapted to be molded or pressed. A point of any type or design may be used in combination with this head and any means may be used for holding the point or prong in the head.

In the design shown in Figure 10 a head 22 is shown having a prong 23 mounted in the head instead of made in the base, and in this design the base is provided with a spring 24 having spring fingers 25 and a cap 26, and it will be noted that the prong may be held in the base in the same manner as it is held in the head in the other designs.

It will be appreciated that the thicknesses of material is exaggerated in the drawing for the purpose of illustrating more clearly, and the prong 3 will be about the size of a pin with a very slight shoulder or bulge adjacent the point. This prong will also be comparatively short, so that it may readily grip and hold two comparatively thin pieces of material and, when the prong is secured in the head, the material will be frictionally held between the under side of the head and upper surface of the base. It will also be noted that, as illustrated in the design shown in Figure 4, the disc 6 pulls upward on the prong so that the respective parts of the button are held by tension, thereby securely holding the material and exerting a constant pressure thereon.

It will be understood that other changes may be made in the construction without departing from the spirit of the invention. One of which changes may be in the use of other means for forming the head, another may be in the use of other means for forming the base, another may be other means for mounting the prong in the head or base, and still another may be in the use of other means for locking the prong in the holding position. v

The construction will be readily understood from the foregoing description. In use the device may be provided as shown and described and it will be noted that with the two edges of material may be pressed thru both thicknesses of the material and the head may be snapped over the prong, and when it is desired to remove the button, the head may readily be removed and the prong and base withdrawn from the material; and, as the prong is only as large as a pin, it will not injure the threads of the material. Any number of heads may be provided with one base and the heads may be of difierent colors, so that any number of buttons of the same color as the garment may be used with the garment and only a comparatively few bases may be provided.

It will be noted that these buttons are particularly adapted for securing material together where sewing buttons on material, or making button-holes, is objectionable, as these buttons securely hold pieces of material together without the necessity of making button-holes and without attaching either part of the button to the material.

Having thus fully described the invention,

what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

A snap button of the type adapted to hold two pieces of material together and to permit separation thereof with a prong passing through the material and having a head and a base with the prong having a split enlarged head integral with one part and adapted to be inserted in and removably held in the other, characterized in that the said prong is about the size of a relatively small needle forming only a tiny hole in said material, therefore not injuring textiles and fabrics, and further characterized in that the head may be separated from the base by inserting the thumb nail between said head and base.

ARRETTA LYNCH WA'ITS. 

